Search Results (130)

Digital transformation (DT) is becoming of strategic importance for Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs), especially in the retail sector, where a significant portion of customer engagement, operational efficiency, and market competitiveness is shaped by digital technologies. Even though there is a growing availability of smartphones, mobile payment systems, and social media platforms, many South African retail SMMEs struggle to achieve a sustained and meaningful DT. Existing studies offer limited insights into the dynamic interactions between technological, organisational, and human agency factors that enable digital uptake over time. This study investigates the sociotechnical dynamics of DT among retail SMMEs in the Eastern and Western Cape provinces of South Africa. The research integrates Adaptive Structuration Theory (AST) with the Limits to Success Archetype (LSA) to conceptualise DT as an evolving process shaped by the interplay of technology, organisational structures (formal arrangement of roles, responsibilities, authority, and communication patterns within an organisation), and human agency. Using an exploratory qualitative research design, purposively sampled semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 retail owners, directors and managers. The interviews were transcribed, and the data were analysed thematically using the Braun and Clarke six-step thematic analysis framework on Atlas.ti 25. Findings indicate that DT in retail SMMEs is enabled by pragmatic, tool-level digital adoption, training, education, ongoing skill development, alignment with business capacity, regulatory clarity, operational realities, addressing scams, fraud, data security, a user-friendly interface, and the availability of native language digital tools, structural interventions that reduce inequality, and DT ecosystem support. The study contributes to DT scholarship by integrating sociotechnical and systems-thinking perspectives to explain the trajectories of DT in retail SMMEs. It also provides practical insights for policymakers, support institutions, and digital ecosystem actors seeking to democratise DT in emerging-market retail contexts. Full article

To support the strategy of building a strong maritime nation, oil and gas resources need to be shifted from inland to coastal areas, and large-scale strategic reserves must be established to meet national security and energy security requirements. Currently, the primary method for offshore gas storage involves onshore steel tanks, which suffer from high costs and limited capacity. The offshore sediment-type salt cavern gas storage is a high-quality alternative solution; however, its long-term stability and economic viability remain to be studied. The feasibility of gas storage in an abandoned cavern of a coastal, low-grade salt mine was simulated using ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL) and FLAC3D 7.0, and the cost–benefit comparisons were conducted among abandoned salt caverns, newly constructed single- and double-well salt caverns, and onshore storage tanks. The results show that, without utilizing the sediment storage space, the gas storage capacity is reduced and surrounding rock deformation is increased. On the other hand, the sediment’s supporting effect can mitigate creep deformation and enhance cavern stability. In addition, increasing the operating cycle frequency can significantly reduce volume shrinkage, roof subsidence, and the extent of the plastic zone. Economic analysis shows that the estimated construction cost for repurposing coastal sediment-type salt caverns is approximately 82 million CNY, which is significantly lower than the 450 million CNY required for onshore storage tanks. Compared with newly constructed single- and double-well salt caverns, it offers advantages in cycle time, cost, and revenue. Accordingly, this research can provide theoretical guidance for evaluating abandoned cavern reserves and conducting feasibility studies. Furthermore, it offers technical support for the large-scale, sustainable storage of carbon dioxide, hydrogen, compressed air, and other renew-able energy carriers in abandoned salt caverns. Full article

Soybeans are a strategic commodity in global agricultural trade, and disruptions to their pricing system have direct implications for food security and trade patterns. This paper examines how major external shocks, particularly the Sino–U.S. trade wars, reshaped the dynamic connectedness and risk transmission structure of the global soybean price system. Using daily data from 2015–2025 for five key benchmarks, Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) soybean futures, Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) No. 1 soybean futures, and cost-and-freight (CNF) prices for U.S. Gulf, Brazil, and Argentina shipments to China, we apply the time-varying parameter vector autoregression Diebold–Yilmaz connectedness model (TVP-VAR-DY) and the time-varying parameter vector autoregression Baruník–Křehlík frequency connectedness model (TVP-VAR-BK) models to quantify time-varying spillovers across short-, medium-, and long-run horizons. The results indicate that the global soybean market is highly integrated, while systemic risk transmission is predominantly short-run and declines sharply at longer horizons. CBOT futures remain the principal source of spillovers, especially in the short term, yet their net influence weakens noticeably after the 2018 trade-friction episode and declines further following the 2025 episode, particularly with respect to South American CNF benchmarks. Frequency-specific evidence suggests that trade-policy escalations are increasingly priced as structural shocks, strengthening medium- and long-horizon connectedness, while DCE’s outward spillovers rise markedly around 2025, consistent with the emergence of a more regionalized pricing architecture centered on Chinese demand. Within South America, Brazil leads short-run price formation, whereas longer-horizon dynamics are more exposed to Argentine policy risk spillovers. These findings provide new evidence on supply-chain reconfiguration and benchmark rebalancing in global soybean pricing and offer policy implications for strengthening China’s pricing capacity and enhancing multi-horizon supply-chain risk management. Full article

Digital–real economy integration constitutes a critical strategic pathway for enhancing supply chain resilience and safeguarding industrial security. This paper takes the listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share markets from 2010 to 2024 as samples to examine the effect and internal mechanism of the integration of digital–real economies on the supply chain resilience of enterprises. The results show that: (1) Digital–real integration significantly enhances corporate supply chain resilience; (2) mechanism test results indicate that information transparency, supply chain diversification, talent capital and enterprise credit respectively perform the functions of chain stabilization, complementarity, extension and strengthening, which act as critical pathways for improving supply chain resilience; (3) complementary analyses reveal a robust three-way synergy among market efficiency, governmental capacity, and digital–real integration—jointly enhancing corporate supply chain resilience; (4) the promoting effect of digital–real integration on supply chain resilience shows heterogeneity and is more significant in samples of private enterprises, small-scale enterprises, regions with higher external risks, and regions with better institutional environments. From a micro-level enterprise perspective, this study reveals the transmission channels and moderating effects of digital–real integration on supply chain resilience, to some extent addressing the limitations of existing research and enriching the theory of digital–real integration and supply chain resilience. Practically, it offers guidance for firms to enhance supply chain resilience through digital upgrading and multidimensional pathways, and to formulate differentiated strategies aligned with external market and government conditions. Full article

At the global level, as well as in Lithuania, the risks associated with climate change and other emerging threats—such as war, radiation, and pandemics—are increasing, and adequate preparedness is necessary to avoid their negative consequences. Despite international and other strategic efforts to assess emerging threats, preparedness to adapt to them and to mitigate their impacts remains insufficient. Considering the insufficient level of preparedness of the country’s cities to cope with these threats, this article introduces a new, sustainable element of urban structure—a comprehensive territorial structural unit capable of functioning under adverse and hazardous conditions. The formation of this new urban complex is based on three core sustainability principles—social, ecological, and economic—alongside international and national urban planning experience. The newly proposed sustainable urban structural complex consists of a group of blocks with diverse building types bounded perimetrically by urban public transport streets connecting the complex with other urban areas. For the functionality of the complex, a structural element—a green core—is envisaged in its central part, intended to serve residents through recreation, social interaction, civil security, and other functions. Due to its functional characteristics, structure, autonomy, capacity to integrate with other urban structures, and other properties, this urban complex closely resembles a biological cell; thus, for semantic clarity, it is termed an urbocell (urban cell). This urbocell is integrated into the urban fabric of residential districts and the entire city, forming a sustainable spatial and urban structure suitable for safe living, working, and recreation. The article models potential structural elements of the urbocell—namely, selected urban block morphotypes—using the computational tool Autodesk Forma, the results of which may support more informed urban planning decisions for developing a more sustainable and climate-resilient urban environment. Full article

Security and stability constitute fundamental preconditions for long-term sustainable development. Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the return of high-intensity interstate warfare to Europe have profoundly transformed the European security environment and challenged long-standing assumptions underpinning European integration and economic development. This article analyses the ongoing transformation of European security with particular attention to industrial resilience, the evolution of the defence technological and industrial base, and the expanding institutional role of the European Union in strengthening strategic autonomy. Using a qualitative analytical approach based on the examination of strategic documents, policy initiatives, and academic literature, the study identifies structural weaknesses in Europe’s defence-industrial system and evaluates recent institutional and financial responses aimed at enhancing resilience and sustainability. The findings demonstrate that security, industrial capacity, and institutional adaptation are increasingly interconnected, and that strengthening resilience and reducing strategic dependencies are essential conditions for Europe’s long-term sustainable development in an unstable geopolitical environment. Full article

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) represent a compelling alternative to lithium-ion batteries for grid-scale energy storage, owing to the high natural abundance and low cost of sodium resources, as well as their strategic alignment with national energy security priorities. Nevertheless, the sluggish Na⁺ diffusion kinetics and limited specific capacity of anode materials continue to impede practical deployment. Herein, nitrogen-doped carbon-coated TiO₂ nanofibers (TiO₂/C-N) were rationally engineered through a facile electrospinning route integrated with synergistic defect and coating engineering. The in situ-formed N-doped carbon shell establishes a continuous, high-conductivity electron-transport network while simultaneously buffering volumetric strain during repeated (de)sodiation, thereby preserving long-term structural integrity. Electrochemical assessments demonstrate that the TiO₂/C-N electrode delivers a reversible specific capacity of 233.64 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 A g⁻¹ (initial Coulombic efficiency 54.13%). Quantitative kinetic analysis reveals a pronounced pseudocapacitive contribution of 41.4% at 1.2 mV s⁻¹, confirming a surface-controlled Na⁺ storage pathway that markedly enhances rate capability. Moreover, the electrode retains 245.5 mAh g⁻¹ after 150 cycles at 1 A g⁻¹, underscoring exceptional cycling stability. This work elucidates the synergistic regulation of N-doped carbon coating and pseudocapacitive kinetics in TiO₂-based anodes, offering a robust design strategy for high-rate, long-cycle-life SIB anodes. Full article

Hydrogen energy has emerged as a strategic pathway for decarbonization, industrial transformation, and energy security across major economies. This study does not directly evaluate ex post policy outcomes. Instead, it develops a Four-Dimensional Governance Framework to assess the structural effectiveness and implementation-oriented capacity embedded within national hydrogen policy frameworks. The analysis examines G20 countries through four dimensions, namely policy objectives, policy intensity, policy tools, and policy subjects. Using the entropy weighted TOPSIS method, the study compares the relative coherence of hydrogen governance architectures across countries. The results show that countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada and Japan consistently rank among the leading group in the comparative evaluation, while other countries occupy intermediate or lower positions according to the composite index results. Policy subjects and policy objectives receive relatively higher weights in the empirical analysis, indicating their stronger contribution to cross-national differentiation within the constructed index. The study provides a structured basis for comparing hydrogen governance frameworks and offers a replicable method for future research linking policy design to implementation evidence. Full article

Despite being a biodiversity hotspot, the Republic of Seychelles faces a critical challenge with an estimated 90% of its food imported. This dependency exposes the country to global supply disruptions and climate-related risks, while pressure on protected ecosystems continues to rise. In response, the Erasmus+ Capacity Building Higher Education GreenTraINT project (Green Training INTernational Program for agriculture, livestock farming, and conservation), co-funded by the European Union (2024–2026), aims to strengthen local expertise in sustainable agriculture, livestock farming, and biodiversity conservation. Through a transnational partnership involving European and Seychellois universities and institutions, GreenTraINT is co-designing innovative higher education modules tailored to the island’s priorities in agriculture, livestock, and biodiversity conservation. This paper focuses on a detailed needs analysis conducted in early 2025 across a diverse group of 84 stakeholders, including students, educators, NGOs, and professionals. The findings reveal a strong demand for applied training in sustainable food systems and biodiversity conservation, blended teaching methods, and programs that bridge theory with hands-on skills. Inspired by other Erasmus+ projects such as NETCHEM and SPARKLE, GreenTraINT adopts a multi-stakeholder, needs-driven approach that aligns international academic expertise with local development goals. As a key milestone, a Summer School in 2026 will pilot the newly developed modules. In the long term, GreenTraINT seeks to leave a lasting legacy by integrating its curriculum into national education pathways, thereby contributing to food security and environmental resilience. With less than four years remaining to achieve the 2030 Agenda targets, the project positions higher education reform as a strategic accelerator for SDG implementation in small island developing states (SIDS). By linking curriculum innovation to measurable sustainability priorities, GreenTraINT helps narrow the SDG implementation gap in vulnerable island contexts. The project offers a model for international collaboration in higher education for sustainability in SIDS. Full article

Hyperconnected IoT ecosystems have become crucial for organizational operations; yet, existing governance structures remain fragmented, are technology-centric, and not well-equipped to manage the risks, compliance pressures, and resilience needs of IoT. This paper presents an integrated, theory-based information security governance model that is tailored for IoT-driven organizations. A conceptual synthesis is performed through integrating five theoretical anchors: governance theory, socio-technical systems theory, risk governance theory, institutional/compliance theory, and resilience/adaptive capacity theory. These theoretical lenses are used to derive essential governance constructs and to develop a modular architecture tailored to IoT security needs. The model’s validity is grounded in theoretical integration rather than empirical testing, consistent with the nature of conceptual research. The integrated model provides six interdependent governance dimensions: strategic governance, operational governance, technical oversight, compliance alignment, risk governance, and resilience/adaptation, anchored by an ecosystem coordination layer. It provides structured decision rights, continuous risk monitoring, regulatory legitimacy, and native adaptive capabilities toward dynamic cyber-physical threats. This research addresses a known gap in the literature on IoT governance by providing an integrated, theoretically validated governance model that systematically connects the rationale and operational mechanisms of governance for resilient, future-proof IoT adoption. The model is further operationalized through a five-level maturity structure, enabling organizations to assess and progressively enhance governance capabilities. Full article

The European Union is increasingly confronted with a convergence of sustainability, democratic, and security-related challenges that affect the conditions for long-term transformation. While sustainable development and democratic resilience are often discussed separately, their interdependence has become more visible in the context of geopolitical instability, geoeconomic competition, hybrid threats, and growing societal polarization. This article examines the relationship between sustainable development and democratic resilience in the European Union and analyses how external pressures shape both agendas. The study employs a qualitative, concept-driven research design that combines the analysis of EU strategic and policy documents, a structured review of relevant scholarly literature, and triangulation with selected sustainability and governance indicators. The findings suggest that the implementation of sustainable development goals depends not only on regulatory and economic capacity, but also on social cohesion, public trust, and the resilience of democratic institutions, which together shape the legitimacy, continuity, and political feasibility of long-term transformative policies. At the same time, energy dependence, supply-chain vulnerabilities, technological dependencies, and information threats increasingly constrain the EU’s sustainability agenda. In response, the article proposes the concept of Sustainable Democratic Security as an analytical framework linking sustainability governance, democratic resilience, and strategic-security capacity. The article contributes to the literature by conceptualising these dimensions as mutually conditioning components of a common governance framework and by outlining their implications for integrated EU policymaking under conditions of geopolitical and geoeconomic pressure. Full article

The persistence of cadmium (Cd) immobilization in acidic paddy soils is exacerbated by acidification and fluctuating redox conditions that promote Cd re-mobilization. While biochar is a promising amendment, its long-term efficacy in Cd immobilization relative to conventional lime and the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely resolved. This study tested the hypothesis that biochar’s superior effect lies in its durable enhancement of soil pH buffering capacity (pHBC), not merely in increasing initial pH. Using six acidic paddy soils amended with three biochars (corn straw, peanut straw, and seeded sunflower plate) and pH-matched lime [Ca(OH)₂] controls, we quantified pHBC changes, resistance to simulated acidification, and Cd dynamics during a flooding-drying cycle. Results showed that biochar amendments increased pHBC by 24.7–110%, significantly more than lime. Under acid stress, biochar-treated soils maintained higher pH and released 40–85% less soluble and extractable Cd than lime controls at equivalent pH range. Correlation and regression analyses established that the biochar-induced change in pHBC (ΔpHBC) was the strongest predictor of reduced Cd availability, exerting twice the influence of native soil pHBC. During the redox cycle, enhanced pHBC directly attenuated soil re-acidification upon drainage, minimizing Cd re-mobilization. Thus, the durable enhancement of soil pHBC is the central mechanism for biochar’s sustained Cd immobilization, advocating a strategic shift from transient pH adjustment to building inherent soil buffering resilience for long-term remediation security. Full article

Water is increasingly acknowledged as a limited and strategically critical resource, particularly in regions where hydrological imbalances are structurally persistent. Across Europe, countries such as Spain, Turkey, Italy, and Greece face recurrent water scarcity driven by precipitation regimes characterized by low annual rainfall, pronounced temporal variability, and marked spatial heterogeneity. In response to rising water demand associated with tourism, agricultural intensification, and sustained demographic pressures, Spain has implemented a series of national water-management strategies over the past two decades. Notably, the National Hydrological Plan, enacted in July 2005, introduced more than one hundred immediate actions focused on modernizing hydraulic infrastructure and reinforcing the country’s desalination capacity. Furthermore, the Royal Decree issued in December 2007 established a comprehensive regulatory framework to promote and standardize water reuse practices nationwide. Within this context, reverse osmosis has emerged as a central technology for the desalination of seawater and brackish water, as well as for advanced water-reclamation applications. This work presents a consolidated examination of Spain’s water-resource management framework, drawing on historical material and recent advances to outline the current context of desalination and water reuse. It presents operational performance data from several full-scale reverse osmosis facilities, and reviews recent technological developments in the field, including newly engineered membrane modules, innovative system architectures, and the latest generation of large-diameter RO elements. Together, these advancements illustrate the evolving role of membrane-based desalination and water reuse in supporting water security in semi-arid regions. Full article

Robust and transferable approaches for evaluating research capacity—whose measurable expression is reflected in research output—are essential for evidence-based science policy and strategic research management. This study develops an integrated framework to assess global scholarly capacity and regional disparities by combining semantic-similarity-based literature filtering, bibliometric mapping, dynamic performance assessment, and spatial analytical techniques into a coherent and replicable model. A Sentence-BERT model ensures thematic precision and dataset consistency, while CiteSpace 6.1.R3 is used tomap publication trajectories, thematic evolution, and influential contributors. A dynamically weighted TOPSIS model incorporates temporal variation to quantify national research capacity, and spatial analyses—including gravity center analysis, Theil index decomposition, spatial autocorrelation, gray relational analysis, and the Geographical Detector Model—identify disparity patterns and their explanatory associations. Applied to urban ecosystem security research (2001–2023), an emerging interdisciplinary field within sustainability science, the framework shows that China and the United States dominate research output, whereas European journals exert strong academic influence. The field has advanced through three stages, with increasing emphasis on ecosystem services and sustainable development. GDP, environmental pressure, and urbanization rate show the strongest explanatory associations with research capacity, and interactive effects—especially those involving GDP—exceed single-factor explanatory strength. Ecological baseline conditions such as NDVI and climate exhibit only limited associations, functioning mainly as contextual factors. Policy implications highlight four priorities: strengthening interdisciplinary and cross-regional collaboration in developing regions; promoting equity-oriented research agendas in developed regions; establishing unified definitions and validated evaluation frameworks; and advancing dynamic, systems-based approaches to ecosystem security analysis. By shifting attention from ecological status assessment to the dynamics of scientific knowledge production and research capacity, this study advances methodological foundations for research evaluation and enriches analytical approaches in urban ecosystem security, offering a generalizable framework for identifying capacity differences and supporting evidence-informed policy design. Full article

Italy’s abundant solar resources and its strategic Mediterranean location offer strong opportunities to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon energy system. This study presents a comparative techno-economic assessment of concentrating solar power (CSP) plants with 8 h of thermal energy storage (TES) and a 1 MW photovoltaic (PV) plant to evaluate their roles in exploiting Italy’s solar potential. The analysis covers four representative locations (Montalto, Val Basento, Ferrara, and Priolo) and examines solar availability, seasonal performance, capacity factor, electricity generation, land use, and levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). Both technologies show marked seasonal variability, with lower winter performance and summer peaks. Southern sites outperform the northern ones, with Priolo achieving the highest generation and Ferrara the lowest. CSP benefits from dispatchable operation enabled by TES, providing nearly constant rated output and summer capacity factors up to 78%, with annual production exceeding 4 GWh at the best site. In contrast, PV operates non-dispatchably, with capacity factors below 31% and annual generation between 1.47 and 1.72 GWh. The North–South performance gradient is stronger for CSP due to its dependence on direct normal irradiance. PV technology offers higher land use efficiency, producing over twice the energy per unit area compared to CSP technology, while CSP technology requires larger areas but ensures greater operational flexibility. Economically, PV technology achieves a lower LCOE, whereas CSP technology entails higher costs but adds value through dispatchability and improved grid integration. Overall, combining CSP and PV systems can enhance grid stability, reduce emissions, and strengthen Italy’s energy security, highlighting the importance of coordinated planning and investment in complementary solar technologies for decarbonization and for regions with similar climatic conditions. Full article